By DPA
Lisbon : Almost 80 European and African leaders gathered in Lisbon Saturday to open two days of talks aimed at creating a new alliance between the continents.
“The message is clear: there is no time to lose. We have to begin looking for new solutions for the future of the continents,” Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates, hosting the meeting, said.
But experts warned of potential storms over issues of human rights, trade and migration, with a row over the invitation to Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe having divided the leaders before the summit even opened.
The summit between the European and African Unions is set to discuss a sweeping range of issues, from climate change to democratic governance.
All 53 heads of government of the African Union (AU), the leaders of 26 out of 27 European Union (EU) member states and top officials from the EU and AU are attending the meeting, which is the first in seven years and only the second such summit ever.
They are scheduled to hold five plenary debates on key areas for future cooperation: peace and security, good governance and human rights, energy and climate change, trade, and migration.
One leader from each side will launch each debate. Angela Merkel of Germany and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa are set to discuss human rights, while Nicolas Sarkozy of France and Omar Bongo Ondimba of Gabon are due to open the talk on peace and security.
Britain’s Prime Minister Gordon Brown is boycotting the summit because of Mugabe’s attendance. In his place has come the Leader of Britain’s House of Lords, Baroness Valerie Amos – herself a woman of African parentage, born in Guyana.
Romano Prodi of Italy and Maitre Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal are set to discuss trade – another sensitive issue, as some African states accuse the EU of trying to force them into unfair deals.
The debate on migration could also strike sparks, with Jose Zapatero of Spain and Moamer Gaddafi of Libya as speakers. Spain is one of the EU states worst hit by illegal migration, while Libya is seen as a key source and transit route for migrants.